British director Mike Leigh took the cast of his acclaimed film Mr. Turner to visit the former home of the movie's subject on Wednesday (11Feb15) as part of a campaign to save the building. The film, which is nominated for four Oscars, tells the story of British artist J. M. W. Turner and Leigh is backing a drive to save a house which was designed and built by the renowned painter in 1813.
Turner built Sandycombe Lodge in Twickenham, England as a country retreat for his father, but also lived there himself from 1814 to 1826, and campaigners have been fighting to raise $3.2 million (£2 million) which is needed for renovations.
Leigh visited the house on Wednesday with a number of castmembers, including Paul Jesson, who played Turner's father in the film, in a bid to raise awareness of the fundraising campaign.
The director says of the drive, "If anyone decided to demolish Shakespeare's birthplace, everyone would make a fuss. This is the only surviving house where Turner lived, to let it go would be a heinous crime. It is not just a house that he lived in, but it is one of the quirkiest buildings there is - it is very evocative and a little bit spooky."
The artist is played by Timothy Spall in the acclaimed movie, which will compete for production design, costume, score and cinematography prizes at the Academy Awards later this month (Feb15).